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E-mini and Micro Futures contracts are smaller-sized versions of standard Futures contracts, designed to make Futures Trading more accessible to retail traders by lowering margin requirements and risk exposure.
What Are E-mini Futures? E-mini Futures are smaller-sized contracts that trade electronically, introduced to attract retail and institutional traders who wanted lower capital requirements than standard futures. Launched in 1997 by the CME Group, starting with E-mini S&P 500 (ES). Today, E-minis exist for indices, commodities, and currencies. Example: E-mini S&P 500 (ES)
Popular E-mini Futures Contracts: E-mini S&P 500 (ES) – Tracks S&P 500 E-mini Nasdaq-100 (NQ) – Tracks Nasdaq-100 E-mini Dow (YM) – Tracks Dow Jones E-mini Crude Oil (QM) – 500 barrels of oil Benefits of E-mini Futures: Lower margin requirements than full-sized contracts High liquidity (tight spreads, active trading) Electronic trading (fast execution) What Are Micro Futures? Micro Futures are even smaller than E-mini contracts, making futures trading even more accessible for small traders. Introduced in 2019 by CME Group to allow traders to scale positions with more flexibility. Example: Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES)
Popular Micro Futures Contracts: Micro E-mini S&P 500 (MES) – Tracks S&P 500 (1/10th of ES) Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 (MNQ) – Tracks Nasdaq-100 (1/10th of NQ) Micro E-mini Dow (MYM) – Tracks Dow Jones (1/10th of YM) Micro Gold (MGC) – 10 oz of gold (1/10th of GC) Benefits of Micro Futures: Lower capital requirement (1/10th of E-mini) Ideal for new traders (less risk per contract) More flexibility in scaling trades Key Takeaways E-mini Futures – Smaller than standard contracts, high liquidity, widely traded. Micro Futures – 1/10th the size of E-minis, best for small accounts & learning futures trading. Micro contracts allow traders to scale positions with lower risk. Both trade electronically on CME Group platforms. |
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